A hydraulic brake system for a bicycle typically includes a hydraulic brake actuation device, a rotor attached to a wheel of the bicycle and a brake caliper operatively connected to the brake actuation device. The caliper is responsive to changes in hydraulic pressure generated by the brake actuation device to urge brake pads into contact with the rotor and effect braking.
When the brake actuation device is initially actuated, no braking forces are generated because a gap must be closed between the brake pads and the rotor. Typical hydraulic brake systems that have a linear rate of travel of the piston relative to the travel of the lever blade require an undesirable amount of lever travel before braking occurs, i.e., a significant amount of “deadband” While most brake systems do not address deadband except to minimize the gap between the pad and rotor during set-up, there have been few efforts to develop mechanisms that close the gap quickly during lever actuation in order to minimize deadband.
There is a demand, therefore, to minimize deadband without the number of parts, weight and the expense of a complicated mechanism, and without degrading brake performance. The invention satisfies the demand with the additional benefits of lighter weight and reduced manufacturing cost.